


Things Aren't Always As They Seem

by AGJ1990



Series: Evelyn Winchester [30]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: John Winchester's A+ Parenting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-17
Updated: 2018-03-17
Packaged: 2019-04-03 19:23:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,907
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14002959
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AGJ1990/pseuds/AGJ1990
Summary: Evy thinks John wasn't there for her when she lived at Stanford with Sam. But is that completely true?





	Things Aren't Always As They Seem

**Author's Note:**

> The characters of Supernatural do not belong to me. The original character of Evelyn Winchester does.

When John Winchester’s phone rang, it was one of two things. A hunt, which he nearly always answered and responded to. Hunts he had no trouble with. There was a clear monster to kill, a clear evil thing to get rid of, and a clear person or family to save. But it was the other calls he had trouble with. When his two younger children called, he never picked up the phone. Things were beyond bad in the relationship between the three of them, and John was so focused on hunting that he almost never took the time to think about ways to try and fix it. He knew it hurt Sam and Evy, but John felt he had no choice.

            What Sam and Evy didn’t know was that John did listen to what they said. He saved every voicemail they left him. When he was hunting alone, or sometimes even with Dean, he would listen to them over and over again. And what they also didn’t know was that John would see them. He would come, as often as he could, to Stanford and watch them for a few minutes, make sure they were healthy and happy, then turn around and go back home to Dean. He hoped that one day, he would be able to break this pattern of staying in the background, but that time wasn’t now.

John pulled up to the clinic and did his best to remain anonymous among the bustling crowd of people coming in and out. He was thankful there was a crowd; it made it easier for him to move in and out undetected. John spotted what he was looking for in the far right corner of the waiting room. Evy sat in Sam’s lap, holding her wrist to her chest. Sam’s arms were so long compared to Evy that they looked like they wrapped around her twice. Even from a distance, John could tell it was at least sprained, if not broken. Evy’s voicemail hadn’t been specific, just asked him to call or come if he could.

_Hi, Daddy. I got hurt at school today. I fell down some steps at school and hurt my wrist. Sammy’s taking me to the college clinic to get looked at. If you can come, Daddy, or call me, I’d like that. I love you, Daddy._

            John noticed Evy sit up, and he fought the urge to go over and hug her when he noticed she was crying. Evy was a tough kid, even he admitted that now. He had seen her fall and scrape her knees and hands as a baby, then get up and calmly ask him, Dean, or Sam to fix her up. Bobby had told him about her facing down a stray, aggressive dog at the age of two and helping Rumsfeld chase it away. Dean had told him about her falling off Sam’s shoulders after a piggyback ride and staying almost completely silent while he put disinfectant on her scraped knees and face. Pain that was enough to make her cry like that was nothing minor. But, as always, Sam knew what to do. He said something to Evy that John couldn’t quite make out. Evy nodded, and John saw her breath was hitching in and out. Sam wiped her face for her, and realization hit John with the force of a gunshot. The hurt wrist was not what was making Evy cry. Not hearing from or seeing him when she was hurt was.

            Sam’s cell phone rang. He pulled it out of his pocket, smiled, and immediately showed it to Evy. Evy tried to take it, but she winced, so Sam opened it and held the phone to her ear. John was not surprised at all who was calling.

“Hi, Deanie!” Evy said, wiping her face.

            Evy talked to Dean for a few minutes, and John’s mind reeled the whole time. Dean made her laugh a couple of times, but there was an unmistakable sadness in her voice. John came close to breaking his vow of silence, walking over and surprising her with his presence. But he didn’t. John watched as Evy hung up the phone and handed it back to Sam, her mood much improved over a few minutes earlier. A nurse finally called Evy’s name, and she got out of Sam’s lap and headed to the back with Sam.

“I’m sorry, little one.” John said, walking back outside towards his truck and driving away.

            Eight months had passed since Evy had sprained her wrist. She hadn’t called John since, and he hadn’t been to ‘visit’. John knew that visit was too generous a word, as he never actually let Sam or Evy know that he was there. But Evy had called him a week ago, and John had turned down hunts to be at her school that night. _Daddy, I’m in a competition at my school. It’s for the best science projects in the county. I made it to the top five, and they’re going to announce the winners Friday night. Please come if you can._

            John had been severely delayed by traffic, so he hoped he hadn’t missed too much. The parking lot was full of cars, and John finally ended up just parking on the street and walking inside. He stood at the very back of the room, and saw everyone was mingling. An older gentleman in a black suit grabbed a microphone and walked towards the front of the room.

“Okay, everyone, if I could have your attention, please.”

The room gradually died down of chatter, and John finally spotted Evy. She was standing in the opposite corner of the room. Sam stood next to her, a hand on her shoulder. Sam’s girlfriend, Jessica, stood behind Evy with her arms around Evy’s neck. Jessica squeezed Evy a little, seeming to be just as excited as Evy was nervous.

“I want to welcome everyone again to the countywide middle and high school science fair competition. For those that didn’t hear my introduction earlier, I’m Allen Davis, superintendent of schools. I had the honor of being one of three judges in this competition. We’ve made our decision. The first thing I want to say is that we are very proud of all our contestants here tonight. You all worked very hard on your projects. No matter who wins, I want everyone here to remember something. We had over five hundred entries in this competition. You have made it to the top _five._ I’m sure your parents agree with me when I say that is something to be proud of, no matter what the outcome.”

A smattering of applause came from around the room, and John noticed Sam grab Evy’s hand and squeeze it.

“Okay, enough of all that. Time to announce the winners.” Mr. Davis pulled a paper out from his pocket and unfolded it. “Third place is…Alicia Bond, Jefferson Middle.”

The applause came again, stronger this time, as a short redheaded girl, around the same age as Evy, walked up to the stage to accept the trophy from Mr. Davis.

“Second place is…Nina Marks, Alton High.”

More applause as Nina went to accept her award, then went back to join her parents.

“And, our winner is…our youngest winner ever, Evelyn Winchester, Capstone High!”

            Evy’s knees seemed to go out for a moment. She hugged Sam and Jess, and had to be prodded to the stage by a beaming Sam. John momentarily forgot his vow to just sit on the sidelines of her life, and found himself clapping as vigorously as the rest of the room. Evy took her trophy from Mr. Davis, who congratulated her and asked her to stay behind for a newspaper photo. Evy agreed, then turned to the back of the room. She saw a man, one that looked vaguely familiar, with black hair and a black jacket walking out. _Could that have been…_ she thought, then quickly dismissed the thought as ridiculous.

            It had been three years since that award ceremony. John had seen Evy a handful of other times, but of course she had no idea. This time, though, he didn’t bother hiding himself. He didn’t have to. It was late at night, and Evy was lying in a coma in the children’s ward of the local hospital. Sam had called him earlier that night crying, begging him to come down and see Evy. As painful as hearing Evy’s voice had been for him the last few years, what Sam had said on the voicemail made him wish he could hear it again.

_Dad, it’s Sam. Evy needs you. Now more than ever. Dad, please, please come down here. She’s in a coma, and she’s dying. Our baby’s dying, Dad. If you don’t come this time, you may not get another chance. We can work out all our other stuff later. Just get here, Dad, please. Don’t let her die without her hearing that you love her._

            As soon as he’d hung up the phone, John had raced towards the hospital. The vampires he was hunting could wait. Sam was right; their baby was dying and that made everything else fall to the wayside. But the two-and-a-half hour trip made him realize something. He still hadn’t found the thing that killed Mary. If he exposed himself to Sam, Dean, and Evy now it could still put them all in danger. So when he arrived at the hospital that night, he’d waited until visiting hours were over, then walked inside.

            John was surprised that no one stopped him. Surprised, but grateful. He made it to the children’s ward, where he quickly spotted Dean sleeping in a chair beside a bed. John approached the bed slowly, not really wanting to do this. Evy looked like she was sleeping. To anyone looking in, it would have seemed like John was just standing there, staring at Evy. But one thought kept going through his head. All the times he’d been to see Evy in the last three years, he’d had to keep silent to keep her from seeing him. Now, he could reach over and shake her arm, yell at her, scream at her, make as much noise as he wanted, and she still wouldn’t hear him. _If Sam and Dean don’t figure out how to stop this thing, it could really be the last time I see her._ He had faith in them, so John just stayed for a few more minutes, watching her sleep. He realized he couldn’t stay long or he risked waking up Dean, so John kissed his forefinger and middle finger and pressed it to Evy’s forehead.

_Please don’t go, little one. Daddy loves you so much it hurts. Please come back._

Fighting back tears, John turned to leave the room. As he made the turn into the hallway, he stopped. He felt goosebumps on his arms, and a small breeze that didn’t match the hospital’s air conditioning system. But what made him stop was the voice. It was faint, almost indecipherable, and John wasn’t even completely sure he did hear it. _Daddy, come back…_ John did look back briefly. Everything in him wanted to do just that. But instead, he turned around, went back to his truck, and drove away.

_I love you, little one. I know it doesn’t feel like it, but I do. Keep fighting, and I’ll see you soon._


End file.
